Ember Schuldt produced a solid first round score of 73 (+1). The senior enters Sunday tied for eighth with a 152 (+8)

April 19, 2014

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Fighting Illini women’s golf team wrapped up the first day’s contest at the Lady Buckeye Spring Invitational, hosted by The Ohio State University, with a tournament total of 622. Senior Ember Schuldt is currently tied for eighth place overall as she goes into the final round with a 152 (+8). The event’s first day of competition featured two full rounds of golf where the Illini posted identical scores of 311. With their +46 score, the Orange and Blue currently are tied for 6th place in the field of 12 teams, which features a total of seven Big Ten squads.

“Ember really played well today," said Illinois head coach Renee Slone. "She had a fantastic first 18. Her ball striking and putting on the second 18 let her down a little but she is looking to improve on them tomorrow.”

The Lady Buckeye Invite allows each team to travel six of their golfers who are all permitted to participate, but only the best four scores from each team counted toward the team’s tournament total. The top-four Illini all recorded scores in the 150's on Saturday, with Schuldt leading the way. The senior carded a solid one-over-par first round before finishing at +8 on the day.

Erin Ahern sits tied for 22nd after shooting a 155 (+11). She is followed by freshmen Emily Joers and Stephanie Miller who are tied for 28th and 40th, respectively. Joers recoreded a 156 (+12) while Miller posted a 159 (+15).

No. 42 Kent State currently leads the field after posting rounds of 297 and 300 , respectively for a team total of 597 (+21). Following the Golden Flashes are Big Ten foes No. 31 Ohio State (601, +25) and No. 24 Michigan State (608, +32). Tied for fourth and rounding out the top five are Purdue and Kansas who both shot a team total of 612 (+36).

“We are looking to go out and leave it all on the course,” said coach Slone. “We want to be competitive and aggressive and really leave it all out there.”

Tournament play will resume tomorrow morning, April 20, at 7:30 am CST for the third and final round of the Lady Buckeye Invitational. A full recap will be posted after the finish at www.fightingillini.com and live scores can be followed throughout the day at www.golfstatresults.com.